My friend, Teresa Aker, has been interviewing celebrities and hi-rollers for her YouTube based tv show Success Diaries with Teresa Aker for over 2 years now, having chatted with Hollywood and international stars and filmmakers, Grammy & Juno winning musicians, financial advisors and spiritual guides as well as numerous authors. Now, she’s an author herself and what a kick-off for her first in a series of mysteries taking place in the high-stakes world of real estate.
The intro to the story and our heroine states at a prestigious real-estate firm where reputation is currency, ambitious agent Alexandra Sinclair discovers that delayed deals, missing documents and a suspicious amendment may point to something far more dangerous than office politics. Well, if that doesn’t grab you…. yes, I was hooked. (see the story outline at end of this article)
I asked Teresa (pictured above) a number of questions (hey, I get to interview her for a change!) about the book and she shared her thoughts here…..
Congratulations on Signed, Sealed, Betrayed, your first novel. So is your heroine, Alexandra Sinclair, loosely based on your own life in real estate? Signed, Sealed, Betrayed is not based on my life, but my years as a realtor certainly helped inspire it. I drew upon my knowledge of the real estate industry – the competitive atmosphere in the commercial industry. The characters and companies are a fictional idea of what might happen if there were a dark side to negotiations.
What first inspired you to write this story…was it a life-long dream to become an author? I love to write. I am actually published in “The Harcourt Holler” for a story I wrote about being a city girl experiencing cottage life for the first time. Heels and all. I wrote my memoirs about grief in another book and then I turned to fiction. This series has been in my thoughts for years and I am pleased to bring it to fruition.
Unlike so much of today’s literary fiction and on-screen capers, there is no shoot ‘em up, bang-bang, blood’n’gore, yes? You chose a more sophisticated level of storytelling – have you received feedback from readers stating how they appreciate and approve of your style? I certainly have. Thank you. I was given feedback by one particular reader who said she was thrilled I showed an ambitious lady with integrity and ethics. She said it was refreshing to read a different type of novel.
Over the years of working in real estate, did you ever witness dodgy dealings or questionable corporate manoeuvres? Honestly, no I did not. I worked with some of the most wonderful people in the real estate industry. This is a completely fictional story with made up characters and companies.
You already have a 2nd book in the works – how long do you plan on writing the series? 3 or 4 more books or, like Agatha Christie’s Poirot, will Alexandra keep solving mysteries for many more years? This series will be written in 6 books. Number 2 will be available in September 2026.
How can people buy a copy? Are you on Amazon or in bookstores? Yes. Signed, Sealed, Betrayed is available on Amazon. Wherever you are in the world, and Amazon is available.
And how can fans follow you/Alexandra? I have a fan page on Facebook under ‘An Alexandra Sinclair Series’ I am also on Instagram, TikTok, LinkedIn and YouTube.
The book is 128 pages
Price: Kindle $6.95 (on special now), paperback $13.93 & hardcover $20.87
THE STORY: When top-producing realtor Alexandra Sinclair walks through the golden doors of the prestigious Winstanley-Monroe Group, she expects competition, ambition and the pressure that comes with working among the best. Behind the polished offices, expensive suits and multimillion-dollar deals, though, something isn’t right. Important environmental documents have disappeared. Transactions are being delayed. Somehow the date June 4th keeps appearing as suspicion flows from one colleague to another. With an eye for details and an organized way about her, Alexandra begins putting the pieces together, but in a world where information is power and a signature can be worth millions, discovering the truth could be a problem in more ways than one.
CONGRATS, Teresa…I’m thrilled to tell people about your book and encourage readers to buy a copy and support Canadian authors!